Joel Hamling earns Dockers contract extension

Jackson Clark Published October 3, 2023 at 12.30pm (AWST)

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Fremantle have extended Joel Hamling's contract by one year. (Image: Will Russell/AFL)

Injured-ridden Fremantle defender Joel Hamling has been offered a one-year contract extension by the club.

The Yorta Yorta man has played just six AFL games since 2019 after suffering from a run of serious ankle injuries.

Hamling was dealt a season-ending ankle injury in February of 2020 and had a reoccurrence of the injury the following year.

Fremantle Head of Player Personnel David Walls believes that Hamling is still a valuable member of the club.

"We'd love to have Joel at Fremantle next year and we're working through that at the moment," Wells said in a video released on the Dockers' website.

"We've got an offer to him, we're just working through that at the moment.

"His back half of the year was really strong and he's moving the best he has for a number of years."

Whilst Hamling's impact for the Dockers' AFL team has been limited in recent seasons, he has proven to be a strong leader for the club's younger players.

Joel Hamling has battled ankle injuries in recent seasons. (Image: Paul Kane/Getty Images/AFL)

"His attitude back at Peel was outstanding and he's really helped develop a lot of our young guys to get them through to the grand final," Walls said.

"It was good to see him play some (AFL) games at the end of the year as well."

Hamling was raised in Broome and eventually moved to Perth to play in the WAFL Colts competition for Claremont.

The tall defender was taken by Geelong with selection 32 in the 2011 draft, but failed to register a game in his three seasons at the Cats.

His move to Western Bulldogs at the beginning of the 2015 season would prove to be a masterstroke, as 24 months later he was a member of the Bulldogs' drought-breaking premiership win over Sydney.

After the flag, he secured a trade to the Dockers and played 62 games over the next three seasons, before suffering the ankle injury.

David Walls also gave an update regarding the situation with Liam Henry, who recently requested a trade from the club.

"We've been informed by Liam that St Kilda is the preferred destination," he said.

"We still haven't caught up with St Kilda, but we were notified by his manager yesterday that he did a medical with the club and it was all ticked off, so we'll have those conversations early next week about what that looks like."